ERFMarc:
So how about the story from the other side (but with a bit of driver’s experience thrown in)?
To the left inside the gates of our w/house yard are 4 bays for deliveries to park while booking in at office. Despite a large sign asking drivers to park and report to office both British and foreign drivers will park across the front of these bays even though they are empty. In fact some of the foreign drivers will drive past all the bays to the far end. Park up and walk all the way back trying all the emergency exits on the way.
Other week just reversing tr into bay when a regular driver pulls up across them but thought, he knows the score so will be shifting soon. By I pulled out two of his mates had parked alongside him and they were having a meeting, blocking the entrance track. Pulled alongside o/side motor and asked him to park up and free the entrance. He went off on one, shouting, f/ing and blinding "them two are parked here, dont see why I should move" right says I all of you move or Ill contact security to move you. Needless to say I then became the bad boy. As we have four right of ways meeting at angles at this point, all artics, swinging about, I had no other option. What made me angrier was that these were regular visitors who knew the score and they knew how busy it got in that area.
toby1234abc:
At a pet shop warehouse,there is a sign to say you must wear safety boots to walk the 5 metres to hand in the notes to the goods in monkey box,i cant see the danger or peril here,it not like you are tipping the stuff in the warehouse,as you have to sit in the porta cabin or tea room.
So you’re doing multi-drop pallet work and you’re not wearing safety footwear then? More fool you.
Most of those rules are put there to stop daft buggers like you who think they know better and it’ll never happen to them, doing themselves an avoidable injury.
As the old adage goes, “Rules are made for the obedience of fools…”.
toby1234abc:
At a pet shop warehouse,there is a sign to say you must wear safety boots to walk the 5 metres to hand in the notes to the goods in monkey box,i cant see the danger or peril here,it not like you are tipping the stuff in the warehouse,as you have to sit in the porta cabin or tea room.
So you’re doing multi-drop pallet work and you’re not wearing safety footwear then? More fool you.
Most of those rules are put there to stop daft buggers like you who think they know better and it’ll never happen to them, doing themselves an avoidable injury.
As the old adage goes, “Rules are made for the obedience of fools…”.
Not everybody wants to wrap themselves up in cotton wool and live life by “What if?” Some are happy to take a chance, knowing if it goes wrong it’s their fault. I never wore safety boots for my first 20 years in this industry and I never injured my self as a result. Until I started agency work in 2006 I had never worn a Hi-viz, which means I had got to the age of 46 with no injuries or death due to that either.
I haven’t worn a Hi-viz for nearly 3 months now, despite being in work 5 nights a week. It’s part of a one man protest but an ineffectual one really as no one at our place has noticed and I haven’t been challenged once, and I haven’t been killed or injured.
Sometimes having safety equipment makes you less careful and is why I have long supported the idea of removing air bags and seatbelts from vehicles and replacing them with a sharpened spike sticking out of the steering wheel in the direction of the driver. That would do more to reduce death and injury than air bags and belts ever will.
bagpuss:
When i was taught to be a lorryist i was coached by an old boy who being driving wagons for 50 yrs ish (this was back in the '94 ) who gave me a piece of advise that i’ve kept to ‘’ always be polite to shunters and clerks when you talk to them whatever attitude they have because they can [zb] up your day , you can eff and jeff about them in your cab ‘’
Yes… In my early days of driving I’d be pretty vocal if someone was taking the ■■■■ or just being arsey for the sake of it, but as you get older and wiser you soon realise the quickest way to get stuff done is to ‘play their game’ and/or chuck in a load of reverse psychology.
I had a delivery in Newcastle at 8am this morning (just as they opened) and greeted the guys with a “morning” and “how we doing” etc. Typical Monday morning blues grunt in reply and then it started. “You’re not booked in til 8am Wednesday” . Phoned TO and they said it was right for today at 8am. Customer disagreed and started a long spiel with me about it. “OK no worries, just write across the notes ‘refused’ and put your moniker on it please and I’ll be away with it back to our yard, sorry about this”. The bloke suddenly looked rather bewildered now that he realised I wasn’t bothered in the slightest; “oh well we can tip you today but it’ll probably be a couple of hours at the earliest.” “OK that’s cool, I’ll let my office know you can do it today for us, cheers. I’ll be on the bunk in the truck, just give us a knock when you want me on a bay.” “Errrrrm… tell you what, back it on bay 10 now and I’ll get to you when I can.” 5 minutes later he’s in the back with the FLT and 20 minutes after that he’s knocking on the door with the signed notes . “Thanks pal, really appreciate it.”
Situation diffused. What he didn’t know was that I needed a fairly quick turn around as my hours were up at noon but trouble is when you tell them stuff like this they get all excited in being able to ‘Lord’ it over you, mess you around and take their time and get you to crack.
ERFMarc:
Better not tell anyone on here what my day job is when I’m not playing with old examples of Sandbach’s finest then! It’s not TP or any of the nationals though so does that make it better?
So how about the story from the other side (but with a bit of driver’s experience thrown in)?
I always try to make sure delivering vehicles are offloaded as soon as possible but if one of our wagons is waiting to be loaded he gets sorted out first, they earn us the money and it’s part of my job to make sure they make the maximum profit. Once he goes past 8 hours its time and a half and a gentle question from management as to why the overtime is so high.
It’s quite interesting how some drivers treat you as just another yard guy, rather than someone who is sympathetic to their cause. I always manage to refrain from shouting back at them “it’s only 15 minutes, I’ve spent four hours at Tesco Chepstow before.”
However turning up at lunchtime when your deliver note says “no deliveries between 12 & 2” then complaining about a forkie trying to offload you and serve customers doesn’t get much sympathy from me.
As regards to serving the customer first it’s logical really . Sadly the driver has no choice but to visit us, whereas the customer can get fed up of waiting and take his money somewhere else (and in Fengate, Peterborough there are about 5 more places!).
I just know that I am going to get a TNUK member turn up on Monday now, tin helmet is ready!
Better planning might help solve some of these problems. What is the point in booking a tip for 8am, when every builder and his dog are getting their bits for the day. They are never going to get them the night before so it will always be a problem.
I always park up outside, if possible, and find out where they want me. It saves a lot of hassle.
Quinny:
The guy at Stoneferry Road Hull got a bit arsey with me on Thursday.
I drove into the gate, and he said, “Wrong gate driver, you should have come through the one off Clay Street.”
Ken.
II once made that mistake (as have several of our drivers) he made me drive round, I wouldn’t mind but I’ve only got a 12 tonner, and you can easily drive through.
Coffeeholic:
Not everybody wants to wrap themselves up in cotton wool and live life by “What if?” Some are happy to take a chance, knowing if it goes wrong it’s their fault. I never wore safety boots for my first 20 years in this industry and I never injured my self as a result. Until I started agency work in 2006 I had never worn a Hi-viz, which means I had got to the age of 46 with no injuries or death due to that either.
I haven’t worn a Hi-viz for nearly 3 months now, despite being in work 5 nights a week. It’s part of a one man protest but an ineffectual one really as no one at our place has noticed and I haven’t been challenged once, and I haven’t been killed or injured.
Sometimes having safety equipment makes you less careful and is why I have long supported the idea of removing air bags and seatbelts from vehicles and replacing them with a sharpened spike sticking out of the steering wheel in the direction of the driver. That would do more to reduce death and injury than air bags and belts ever will.
I don’t care much for over-doing the H & S myself, and in some ways I agree with your sentiments about it making you less careful. Only wear hi-viz and bump cap in the yard cos our site manager’s ■■■■ about them, since I deliver to farms it’s not a problem once I’m out on the road. Only exception I make is one pet shop in Porth where I have to carry the bags across a busy road from the loading bay to the shop door.
Safety boots are a different matter though, IMHO. I wear them as a matter of course, they’ve saved me from injury more than once. I’ve only got one pair of feet and I’m likely to need them right up to the day I pop my clogs thank you, so I’ll take up my gaffer’s offer of free boots. It might have been different back in the day when you often had to buy your own, nowadays as you well know it’s mandatory for the employer to provide PPE so why the hell wear your own shoes out at work?
Muckaway:
The one man who doesn’t wear a hi-viz stands out from those that do…
True… but if he wasn’t wearing steel-tip boots he might well have to sit out instead.
I actually made a similar point to one of our directors about not wearing hi-viz jackets in the warehouse; asked him why it was that when I went in to get loaded and wore a hi-viz, no-one noticed me, but if I didn’t…
and I haven’t been killed or injured.
. Phoned TO and they said it was right for today at 8am. Customer disagreed and started a long spiel with me about it. “OK no worries, just write across the notes ‘refused’ and put your moniker on it please and I’ll be away with it back to our yard, sorry about this”. The bloke suddenly looked rather bewildered now that he realised I wasn’t bothered in the slightest; “oh well we can tip you today but it’ll probably be a couple of hours at the earliest.” “OK that’s cool, I’ll let my office know you can do it today for us, cheers. I’ll be on the bunk in the truck, just give us a knock when you want me on a bay.” 
“Errrrrm… tell you what, back it on bay 10 now and I’ll get to you when I can.” 
